❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

Joshua pressed his thumb on the scanner, unlocking the door to his skyrise apartment. As they walked in, Seokmin stared at the apartment in awe. It was truly artistic.

Seokmin was a tad bit jealous at how stunning Joshua's home really was. "The bathroom's right here." Joshua pointed to a door just beside the entrance.

"I'll bring down a set of sleepwear for you." Joshua walked up the stairs and disappeared into the second floor while Seokmin used the chance to tour the first floor.

While it was glamorous and aesthetic, it was also indescribably empty. It lacked emotion, it felt like a house not a home.

Seokmin spotted many unused items in the home and the sparkling, clean surroundings. Did Joshua really live here?

Seokmin's stomach grumbled but he knew better than to just start cooking in someone else's home so he just opened the fridge and looked for anything he could munch on, but there was nothing.

Absolutely nothing in the fridge, apart from a pack of apples. Seokmin's mouth hung open in shock as he took out an apple and a plate, chopping it into tinier pieces for Joshua. He took out another for himself and began to eat it.

Not very filling, but it was too late to eat anything heavy or to order anything.

Seokmin noticed Joshua walk down the stairs. He had changed into his pajamas which where a dark blue, silk set. His hair was no longer held together by gel and had fallen down, making him look like a cute baby as his cheeks were also puffy.

"Here you go." Joshua handed the pajamas to Dokyeom as he got closer. Dokyeom collected them before pushing the plate of apples towards Joshua. "Thanks, this is for you."

"Thanks." Joshua returned, picking up an apple slice. His eyes surveyed the floor before he pointed to the couch on the right. "I don't think you'll be able to sleep on that couch, it's really uncomfortable."

Seokmin turned his head towards the living room and looked at the couch. It was shaped weirdly and it didn't have a large enough flat surface for Seokmin to rest on, same with the other couches in the living room.

"So where should I sleep? Do you have a mat or a rug or something?" Seokmin asked and Joshua's face scrunched in disbelief. "What?" Seokmin looked at Joshua, confused.

"I'm not letting you sleep on a rug or a mat, we'll share my bed... it's huge, don't worry." Joshua finished his second slice and walked around the island, opening the fridge and placing the bowl inside.

He closed the fridge and took Dokyeom's hand, leading him upstairs. "Is it too late to sleep on the couch?" He asked and Joshua smiled, nodding fervently.

"Yep."

As they entered Joshua's bedroom, Seokmin understood what he meant when he said his bed was huge. In fact, it was humongous. It took up most of the space in the room, positioned right in the center.

Covered in silk bedsheets and fluffy pillows with a duvet to match, it looked very comfortable.

"You can change in there." Joshua pointed to another door and Seokmin nodded walking in. He quickly changed into the PJs, keeping his suit on his elbow.

As he wanted to leave, his eyes hung on the bottle of sleeping pills on Joshua's sink. He opened the bottle to see it was almost empty. Then he closed it back and dropped it down.

He moved towards the cabinet above the robe and pulled it open, seeing bottles of pills lined up on the shelves. All of them being the exact same brand of sleeping pills.

Did Joshua have insomnia?

Seokmin recalled the night in the hotel which only confirmed his suspicions. Joshua did have insomnia.

The door handle pulled downwards and in came Joshua. Seokmin paused as he looked at Joshua whose eyes moved to the cabinet that was fully opened. He felt himself weaken as he dissected the situation, Dokyeom had found out that he was an insomniac.

"Sorry, I just..." Seokmin scrambled for excuses and Joshua walked in, shutting the cabinet door, almost shutting Seokmin's hand in with it. "Ow!" Seokmin pulled his hand out of the tiny space as Joshua closed it shut.

"Sorry." Joshua apologized, his forehead starting to sweat. Seokmin's eyebrows furrowed and he got a tissue to clean off Joshua's sweat. "I don't care by the way."

Joshua, who had been facing away from Dokyeom, looked up at him slightly. "Sometimes I can't sleep too, especially on days like these." He explained and Joshua's expression changed. Dokyeom's words of reassurance were sweet and caring and they soothed Joshua immediately. He felt secure around Dokyeom.

Usually, he didn't feel safe around anyone. He didn't trust in people because no one ever trusted in him. No one ever believed in him to do anything right. Everyone around him could betray him, most of them had.

But Dokyeom was different. At least to Joshua he was. He was trustworthy. He was worth fighting for, he was worth having around.

Joshua held Dokyeom's wrist, gently pulling his hand down before he pulled Dokyeom into a hug. He didn't want to air out his feelings yet but he wanted to show Dokyeom that he truly was indebted to him.

Seokmin's breath hitched as Joshua's hand went from his back down to his waist, pulling him closer. Seokmin's face went completely red as his own hands went around Joshua.

He was treading on a dangerous path, but, then again, he had always been one to play with fire.

He knew he loved Joshua. There was nothing else he could do to deny it, but what he didn't know was the next step to take.

Joshua was his escape, his safe place, his home... but he was still the one he had to kill. Because if he didn't, he would be the one dead.

He didn't want to die.

.............

Their third hug of the day had diffused into the environment, leaving them with their feelings, confusion and a whole lot of awkwardness.

Joshua got into the bed and so did Seokmin on the opposite side. They covered themselves with the duvet, the large space between them apparent.

"Good night." Joshua murmured, loud enough for Dokyeom to hear as he closed his eyes. Seokmin nodded, returning the words before also closing his eyes.

With a lot on his mind, Seokmin was unable to sleep and so was Joshua. Seokmin looked behind him, peeping at Joshua who at the exact same time peeped at Seokmin, their eyes meeting each other.

"I can't sleep." Seokmin complained and Joshua sighed, rolling over completely. "I can't sleep either." Joshua moved closer, purposely but Seokmin didn't notice, his mind still heavy with thoughts.

As he tried to sit up, he accidentally strained his stomach making him whinge in pain. "Are you okay?" Joshua sat up, going closer to Dokyeom who closed his eyes once he felt the pain.

"Yeah, I... I wasn't being careful." He laid back down and Joshua followed, the space between them entirely vanished. "Sorry, this is all my fault." Joshua's hand caressed Dokyeom's injury, his touch against Dokyeom's skin eradicating all the pain.

"No it's not, don't say that." Seokmin corrected Joshua. It wasn't Joshua's fault, not at all. Seokmin was the one who chose to protect him and he would do it over and over again as long as it meant Joshua was safe.

"Fine, I won't say it." Joshua adhered and the tension between the two suddenly multiplied as their bodies came closer. Seokmin glanced at the now nonexistent space and looked back at Joshua.

"You were over there a few seconds ago." Seokmin pointed to the extreme edge of the bed and Joshua rolled his eyes, a mischievous smirk forming on his face.

"You said you couldn't sleep."

"So?" Seokmin questioned and Joshua pulled him in even closer, wrapping one hand around his body and the other under his head.

"I'm here to help you sleep."

❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎❤︎

Ⓒ︎𝐎𝐇𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐎𝐇𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐎𝐇
𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 - 06/10/2024
𝐄𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 - N/A